The Enemies
by Luna Sealeaf
Summary: Old 'friends' of Seth's have just joined his school, and it's not going to make his life any easier. Luckily he has Ryan to help with revenge.
1. Default Chapter

Well, I've done it. Just like my friend asked (begged) me to do; I've written an O.C. story. Personally, I like it, but the writing is horrible, so if anyone would like to rewrite it or write one with a similar theme, please feel welcome to. See, I always get my great ideas when I'm tired, but that's also when I lose my writing ability, and I'm not taking this fic seriously enough to rewrite it. You may even use the same characters I make up and the plot; I don't really care, I'm just a sick person who likes to see my favorite characters have bad days.Anyway, hope you enjoy it.  
  
*Disclaimer* I do not own any of these characters. Only Chris, Guy, Mat, and Brad are my 'creations' and I don't claim any right to them either. Want them, you can have them! Please don't sue me, I'm not making any profit, and the writing's not even that good!  
  
Further warning: I have no idea when this takes place, put it anywhere in the season you want, pairings won't really be mad, except for Marissa and Ryan. So maybe after they get together but before Seth and Summer start to get together, while Anna's away? Also, I didn't see the first few episodes, and I have a horrible memory, so I probably screwed up on some details. Oh well, just thought I'd let ya know.  
  
"Old Enemies"  
The Rendevous  
  
The morning sun began to fill the room with light, despite the drawn curtains. Seth Cohen moaned and turned away from the window, trying to fall back asleep. It wasn't working; after a night of strange nightmares he just couldn't fall back asleep, despite his exhaustion.  
  
"Seth! Come on, are you getting up or are you still sick?" He heard his mother, Kirsten, call from the kitchen.  
  
"Still sick," he mumbled, but he sat up in bed, rubbing his eyes and yawning. In a louder voice, he called out to the others assembled in the kitchen, "Yes-yes, I'm coming. I wouldn't dream of depriving our school of my sought after presence for another day." Outside of his room, three pairs of eyes rolled simultaneously at his remark.  
  
Seth had been sick the past two days with some sort of virus, but he had seemed to be recovering the past evening, and he didn't think he could get away with staying home another day.  
  
Blinking in the brightly lit kitchen, a now dressed Seth walked in and sat down next to Ryan at the table; he was reading a magazine and eating cereal. His dad, Sandy, was drinking a cup of coffee, as was his mother, and the two were discussing some new case of Sandy's. Seth poured himself a glass of orange juice and took a drink before searching for his favorite cereal. He found the box, the empty box, and groaned, deciding this was not a good start to his day.  
  
"You sure you boys are going to be ok for the rest of the week?" Sandy asked Ryan and Seth as the two stood up to leave for school. Kirsten and Sandy were taking a short, but much needed vacation. Today being Wednesday, they weren't returning until the next Sunday.  
  
"Well, we'll try to keep the parties to a minimum," Seth joked, pulling on his jacket and waving goodbye. As they walked out, Ryan smiled at them and said over his shoulder,  
  
"We'll be fine. Have a good vacation," Mr. and Mrs. Cohen smiled at the boys and went to get ready for their trip.  
  
To his dismay, but not so much to his surprise, Seth was right about the day being a bad one. It started out normal enough; some name calling, a few half hearted shoves or snickers when he wasn't with Ryan. He had noticed that people were usually nicer when Ryan walked with him, especially when Marissa was walking with them, but he didn't have many classes with either of them.  
  
Still, he was used to it and was able to s mile when he greeted Ryan for lunch.  
  
"Hey, where's the beautiful and fair Marissa?" He asked Ryan as they sat down at their usual table.  
  
"One of her friends got dumped by a boyfriend or something, so she's sitting with her today," He replied, more interested in his sandwich than Seth's question.  
  
"Ah, drama queen sitting, got it." Seth murmured; Ryan laughed and they discussed the day's events as they ate. In fact, Ryan had been more talkative lately and Seth was actually starting to enjoy himself when he saw a sight that made his heart stop.  
  
"Oh dear God." He said, not even noticing that he had said it out loud. Seth was staring at a group of four boys who were standing by a tree a few yards from them. Frowning at Seth's horror struck gaze, Ryan tried to find what he was looking at.  
  
"What's wrong?" He asked, but Seth ignored him, he didn't know what to say. Miraculously, he was saved by Marissa walking over to their table, smiling a greeting before turning to Ryan.  
  
"Did you finish that science homework last night? I forgot my text, so could you help me with it?" By the draining of color in Ryan's face, he had forgotten about it too.  
  
"Ah shit, no, I didn't do it either. Maybe we can get it done together before class. See ya later," He said to Seth, already standing up and walking with Marissa back to the school. Seth wasn't in their science class, so he couldn't help them. Instead, his gaze returned to the boys; he knew them. It had been a few years since he had last seen them, but they hadn't changed much at all; they'd only grown taller and more muscular.  
  
The tallest one was Brad, he was talking to the other three. He had silver spike earrings and his hair was spiked up. A black t-shirt and torn black jeans gave him a menacing look. He was obviously the leader of the other three; Chris, Guy, and Mat, who were all dressed in clothes similar to all the other popular boys' clothes. They were listening to Brad with their complete attention, laughing at some of his words.  
  
To his great horror, Brad turned and saw Seth staring at them. Snickering, he nudged the strong looking red headed Chris, who was standing next to him. Even as Seth wondered how quickly he could get the hell out of there, the four boys sauntered over to his table, grinning.  
  
"Long time no see, Coco." Brad said in a falsely cheery voice. Seth ground his teeth. Coco was the name they had given him in sixth grade, after Mat had poured boiling hot chocolate down his throat; the others had held his mouth open and his arms and legs still. It had hurt to eat or drink anything for almost two weeks, so the humor had been lost on him. For some reason it had seemed to be one of their favorite actions with him, since they had decided on the nickname, 'Coco'.  
  
"Didn't figure on seeing the Fantastic Four here anytime soon." Seth replied, trying to not sound as terrified as he felt. These boys had proved they could be as cruel as any adult at the age of 9, and had tormented most of his life through elementary and middle school. Luckily, they hadn't made it into Harbor when Seth had gotten in; how they had managed it now was beyond Seth's comprehension.  
  
"Nice to see our old buddy again, isn't it?" Brad said coldly, hitting Seth on the back hard enough to knock the wind out of him. The four of them laughed when Seth winced.  
  
"Yeah, we should get together, talk about old times," Guy, a pale and skinny, although still strong, boy with dyed black hair said. The hair on Seth's neck stood up. 'No way, my life was actually starting to go fairly well.' He thought numbly. He tried to stand up, saying quickly,  
  
"Sure, that'd be great, but I, uh, really need to get to class, so if you'll just-"  
  
"Sit down." Brad said. Mat pushed him roughly back into his seat. Too roughly; for Seth's weight made it tip over backward and the boys, as well as a few people nearby, laughed loudly.  
  
"We're having a little party at my house tonight. You should come." Brad said, cold eyes glinting. Seth stood up again and swallowed hard. Truly, when he had first said to Ryan, "Welcome to the dark side," so many weeks ago, this was what he had been referring to. Brad came from one of the richest families he knew of. He had access to everything from drugs, alcohol, and weapons, and he was spoiled. None of the boys' parents cared what they did, and so they knew no limits to their actions.  
  
"I'd love to guys, really, but I've just got too much stuff to do. Sorry and all," he babbled, glancing anxiously at the clock and wondering when the bell would ring.  
  
"No problem, we'll just have to meet up some other time after school," Brad said, smirking as the bell finally rang. Seth felt relief swell inside him. 'Man, talk about being saved by the bell,' he thought as he threw his lunch away and grabbed his books.  
  
To make things worse, Brad was in Seth's history class, and Mat in his gym. Ryan was in neither one, and Seth had to manage the rest of the afternoon by ignoring the jeers and taunts of the two. Even worse, if that were possible, was the fact that all four boys seemed to have become popular; how, Seth couldn't figure out, but he didn't think his social status would be improving any time soon.  
  
At last the day ended, and Seth practically ran through the halls to Ryan's locker.  
  
"Nice to see you again man! Ready to go home and get your ass kicked by the almighty Seth?" He asked, joking about their current video game marathon they'd been having for the past week. Ryan grinned, but shook his head.  
  
"Marissa's got to stay after, so I figured I'd wait for her and get a ride home with her." He felt bad seeing Seth's crestfallen face, but he had already promised Marissa, and he hadn't thought that the stupid marathon had really been that important to Seth.  
  
"No problem, I'll see you later tonight then," Seth replied briskly, clapping his hands together and trying not to show his disappointment as he went back to his locker. By the time he left the building, most of the other kids had already left. Seth had parked in the spot farthest from the school since they had been running late that morning. 'Oh well, maybe a relaxing, quiet afternoon won't be so bad,' he thought to himself.  
  
No sooner had the thoughts crossed his mind then he felt a firm hand grip his shoulder. He tried to shake it off, but it only tightened.  
  
"Hey there Coco." He heard Brad say. He tried to turn and felt someone tear his bag off of his shoulder and hold his arms behind his back. Seeing Guy and Chris beside Brad, he figured it must be Mat.  
  
"We brought you a gift, seeing as how its been so long since we saw each other." Guy said, a hyena-like laugh coming from him. Seth had always thought Guy might be touched in the head, to put it nicely, but he feared Brad the most. They were all cruel kids, but Brad was the smartest one, and Seth knew the others would just be common bullies without him.  
  
He struggled against Mat, but was definitely no match for him. Then, to his revulsion, Chris held up a jar, laughing. The glass jar held a large tarantula in it. Seth broke out in a sweat. He hated spiders; it was a phobia he'd never gotten over and one that the four had always loved to torture him with, once they had learned of it.  
  
"We found this guy by our car and couldn't help but think of you. Hold him still Mat," Brad instructed as Seth's eyes widened and a hoarse, "No.." came out of his mouth. Chris opened the jar, and in one swift movement he dumped it down Seth's shirt, dropping the jar which shattered onto the ground. Seth's yell was quickly muffled by Mat's large, sweat stinking arm around his mouth. He could feel the spider crawling on him and he nearly went into a panic, struggling to free himself and kicking at the other boys. Almost by accident he kicked Guy in the stomach, not even realizing it. With a growl, Guy drew a fist and punched Seth hard in the stomach, leaving him gasping for air and nearly suffocating against Chris's tight arm. After Guy's first blow, the others soon joined in their favorite sport, Mat eventually dropping him to the ground so he could join also, since Seth had stopped struggling.  
  
He didn't know how much time had passed, but it felt like the beating lasted forever. At last, growing bored for the moment and kicking Seth one last time, they walked off laughing. It took Seth a few minutes to stand up, and the world seemed to spin. He tasted blood on his lip and felt it drip down his forehead, and he could feel a few shards from the jar imbedded in his arms and hands. His clothes were torn and he wondered how bad he looked. It hurt to breathe, but after catching his breath he crawled into his car and started the engine, slowly driving home.  
  
His luck, if you could call it that, had turned a little, or maybe the universe was busy ruining someone else's life, for the house was dark and there were no signs of Ryan. Seth felt a great need to keep what had happened from him. It was humiliating for one thing, and there was nothing Ryan could do for him anyway, except pity him and get beat up himself if he tried to help. Seth was tired of him having to fight his battles for him, and maybe the boys would grow tired of tormenting him soon. After all, surely they must have grown up a little bit? Of course, that was what he had thought every year until high school, and he had always been proved wrong.  
  
Seth stumbled into the house and managed to get to his room, although he clutched the kitchen island once to steady himself, before he managed to get to his room, lock the door, and collapse onto his bed. He hadn't noticed the blood his hand had left on the counter, or he would surely have cleaned it up.  
  
Ryan noticed it however. He and Marissa had gone to get dinner after school, and they had brought some home for Seth. They were surprised to find the lights were off and the house dark so early, and after they had kissed good night and Marissa had driven off, Ryan walked into the house cautiously. Flipping on lights, he called out,  
  
"Seth?" But received no answer. Mentally he shrugged, figuring that he must have been tired and had gone to bed early. He walked into the kitchen to put the food away; but when he turned the light on; he saw the blood on the counter and froze. Setting the food on the counter he examined it to make sure it was blood, and when he knew for certain he walked quickly to Seth's room, trying to open it. Finding it locked didn't help to calm him down and he knocked on the door loudly. It would be just his luck to have Seth get seriously ill or injured while his parents were away and with just Ryan around. Besides that, he was worried. From his experience, Seth wouldn't be careless enough to cut himself, bleed on something, and not clean it up-not if he was able to.  
  
"Seth, are you in there?" Ryan called out. He heard a loud moan and again tried to open the door.  
  
"I'm awake, what's wrong?" Seth called out. Or rather, he gasped out. It took all of his strength to keep his voice normal and not sound like the truth-that he was practically wallowing in pain.  
  
"Did you hurt yourself in the kitchen or something?" Ryan asked again, already feeling stupid since Seth sounded fine. Tired, and stressed, but not like he was on his death bed.  
  
"Uh.." Thinking fast, Seth realized what must have happened. "Yeah, I tried to make a sandwich and cut myself with the knife. Sorry, must have forgotten to clean it up, I'm really tired, I don't think I'm quite over that bug," He said quickly through clenched teeth. Satisfied with the answer, Ryan said,  
  
"Ok, sorry to wake you," and walked back through the kitchen. He stuck the food in the fridge, but when he turned he noticed that there were no signs of cooking. Opening the dishwasher, he found it was empty. The knives were all clean also. So he had the energy to clean the knife he had used, but not clean up the counter? Ryan shook his head as he walked to the pool house. Whatever Seth's problem was, he obviously didn't want Ryan to know.  
  
Inside his room, Seth lay staring at the wall, hurting too much to fall asleep as he tried to form a plan for the next day. It wouldn't be too hard to avoid Ryan at school, he could skip lunch, but what would everyone else say when they saw his appearance? He only had one black eye; his face had been on the ground most of the time, so the only real bruises that would show would be his arms and legs. Still, he could wear layered clothing, even if it was warm out. No, he was far more concerned with how he would deal with them again. He didn't know how far they would go, and couldn't help feeling apprehensive, to say the least. Seth tried to sleep despite his pain, but Brad's cruel laughter echoed in his head throughout the night.  
  
There, all done! I know it probably sucks, but I had to post it. Please, if someone would like to continue, let me know. This is the sort of thing I prefer to read rather than write. I'm not good at making angst seem realistic and not super mushy. If you'd like to review, please do, although trust me, if you thought it was horrible, I agree, so telling me won't really alter anything. Should I bother to continue? That would be up to you. I'll write another chapter if no one else volunteers and if at least one person claims to like it. When, I don't know, but asap anyway. Thanks!  
-Luna Sealeaf 


	2. Jealousy

Thank you so much everyone for the reviews! I must admit I was very surprised at how many people actually liked the story, although I am also surprised that there aren't more like them. You're right Millie, it is spelled 'Cocoa' somewhere my tired brain wondered about that but I ignored it. Thanks for reminding me. I really have no clue where I'm going to end this or how, since I didn't expect people to like it, or I thought someone would offer to rewrite it for me. I charge all you people who like the story to write more like it! Seth is my favorite character although I adore Ryan too, but I get tired of all the romance fiction, even though I'm sure most of them are very good. Anyway, here's the next chapter. Don't ask me when I'll get the third one up, since I have no idea what should happen next.  
  
The Enemies  
Chapter 2: Jealousy  
  
Seth awoke the next morning in a haze of pain. How had he managed to sleep? He wondered, since every small motion he even thought about doing hurt incredibly. Sighing, he realized that he was still in the clothes he had worn yesterday, and that he had smeared blood on the sheets and covers of his bed. Stifling his groans of pain he slowly took the sheets off his bed and dumped then in his hamper before walking to the small bathroom adjoined with his room. As he had guessed the night before, he looked pretty bad. Still, except for some cuts and dried blood on his face, there was nothing too obvious.  
  
By the time he had gotten cleaned up and changed, his head was pounding. A loud banging on his door didn't help him either.  
  
"Seth, you still in there?" He heard Ryan call out. A rush of relief went through him; so Ran didn't suspect anything, although he vaguely remembered Ryan asking him something about the kitchen last night.  
  
"Um, yeah. You know what; I'm not feeling that great again. I don't think I'm quite over this bug, so maybe I'll just stay home today,"  
  
On the other side of the door, Ryan's suspicions were proved true. Something was definitely wrong with Seth, but he was trying to keep it from Ryan. Feeling annoyed, after all, Seth was always trying to convince Ryan that he could tell Seth anything, he said,  
  
"Hope you feel better," and went to see if Marissa could give him a ride again. In his room, Seth breathed a sigh of relief. Rummaging through his closet, he pulled out a sweater and put it on to cover the bruises on his arms, and then he made his way to his parents' bathroom.  
  
There, he found it; his mother's makeup. Feeling exceedingly foolish, he found what he was looking for. Some sort of foundation powder, cream, stuff. It took him a few tries to get the right amount on; he only wanted enough to make the bruises and his black eye very hard to see. Only Marissa or Ryan, and rarely Summer, ever got close enough to notice anything anyway.  
  
Finally getting it right, he dashed, or rather, he hobbled, out the door, glad that Ryan hadn't taken the car, and drove to school.  
  
The morning went by smoothly; no one noticed anything, or if they did, they didn't mention it to Seth. Ryan had given him an odd look when he had entered their English class, but he hadn't had time to question him once the bell rang. After the class was over, Seth had left before Ryan could catch up to him. Despite his apprehension every time he spotted Bra, Guy, Chris, or Mat, they only jeered, and once Mat had brushed against his shoulder hard enough to make Seth stumble. Besides that, they appeared to be interested in other things besides Seth, which suited him just fine.  
  
The next period found him sitting in the library, studying, when he noticed someone walk up to him. Freezing, he turned slowly, and then his jaw dropped as he realized it was Summer.  
  
"Hey, Cohen. You understand this stuff, mind explaining it to me?" Her tone of voice and her expression left no doubt that she was ordering, not asking. Seth felt like he was dreaming, if he was, it was a good one. Summer-looking beautiful and perfect as ever-sat down across from him, obviously not enjoying this, but resigned to her fate.  
  
"I wasn't aware you cared so much about history class," he stammered as she handed him the text book. She glared at him as she answered,  
  
"Don't be an idiot; of course I don't care, but for some bizarre reason my dad and step mom do. If I flunk another test, they threatened to take my credit card away," she got out her homework and waited for him to open the text book.  
  
"Ah, a fate worse than death," he replied, giddy with happiness as he opened the text book.  
  
"What's wrong with your face? And why are you wearing a sweater? It's like, eight degrees," she asked in a condemning tone. Luckily, Seth had already practiced his reply.  
  
"I'm touched that you care, really. I'm recovering from illness, so" already bored, Summer said,  
  
"Whatever," and started looking at the text book.  
  
For about the next ten minutes of his life, Seth was in heaven. Summer's snide remarks died down as he answered her questions and explained the material to her. Although she was obviously uncomfortable at sitting with him, or being seen with him, just the fact that she was there was good enough for him.  
  
"Hey, Summer," the voice turned Seth's blood to ice.  
  
"Ew, who gave you permission to talk to me?" Seth struggled not to grin at Summer's remark to Brad. He had come over to their table, smirking at Summer.  
  
"Come on, you know you want to go out with me," Brad said, still grinning like a snake, despite Summer's reply. She turned in her chair to face him, eyes flashing with anger.  
  
"Only in your sick, delusional dreams." She said scathingly. Seth was smiling openly now. Brad's eyes caught his and Seth's smile died. The pure hatred in Brad's eyes was disturbing.  
  
"You can't possible prefer Cohen's," he spat the name out, staring at Summer incredulously, "company to me. He's a complete loser,"  
  
"Like you're not?" she replied. With that she stood up, grabbing her books and glaring at Brad with disgust. "Just because some jocks think you're cool doesn't mean you belong here. Come on Cohen." Summer ordered as she turned and walked out. Seth stood up to follow her, but Brad grabbed his arm in a death grip.  
  
"You're a dead man, Cocoa," he whispered before releasing his arm and stalking away. Seth stared at him for a moment before leaving the library. Apparently Summer had only wanted to leave with Seth to piss Brad off, because she was nowhere in sight.  
  
Ryan was at his locker, about to go to lunch. His annoyance at Seth had turned to curiosity. Why had he told Ryan he was sick and then turn up at school anyway? He had been avoiding Ryan all day too. It didn't make sense; he couldn't piece any of it together in his mind. With a frustrated sigh, he slammed his locker shut, but as he turned he nearly walked into four boys standing in front of him in the almost deserted hallway. Eyeing them wearily, he asked,  
  
"What do you want?" He scanned the four boys and wondered if they were new. The one in front of the others was tall and pale, with black hair and eyes that looked almost the same color. A muscular, red headed boy with a military hair cut stood beside him, arms crossed. Behind them stood two others, a blonde haired, blue eyed skinny boy and a dark brown haired boy with startlingly bright green eyes. The one in front answered his question.  
  
"So you're Ryan Atwood? From Chino, right? Moved in with the Cohens?" Still eyeing them, Ryan inclined his head slightly, disliking the tone of voice the boy had used.  
  
"I'm Brad, this is Mat," he jerked his head to the person next to him, "and Guy and Chris." Ryan wondered why they were talking to him.  
  
"Well, you already seem to know who I am." With a stiff, dismissive nod, he started to walk past them. A loud snicker, accompanied by Brad's voice, stopped him  
  
"How's Seth feeling?" Ryan turned around, suddenly feeling apprehensive.  
  
"What do you mean?" he asked them, trying to look like he knew what they were talking about. The boys exchanged glances and stifled laughs, except for Brad, who kept smiling and gazing at Ryan coolly.  
  
"Guess he didn't tell you, or show you. Smart of him." Ryan was quickly becoming annoyed at this guy, but he didn't let it show.  
  
"What the hell are you talking about?" he tried to sound indifferent, since they were obviously relishing what Brad was saying. Brad shrugged, feigning an expression of innocence.  
  
"We were just worried about him, last time we saw him he was laying on the ground bleeding." Brad had barely gotten the words out before Ryan rushed at him, seizing his collar and pushing him against the lockers. The others immediately pulled him off; Brad was laughing.  
  
"What the hell did you do?" Ryan shouted, feeling intensely angry. It all made sense now, the blood and Seth's avoidance of him. For some reason he hadn't wanted Ryan to know he'd gotten hurt. Still with an innocent face, Brad held up his hands in a surrendering position.  
  
"How do you know it was us? He hasn't exactly got many friends, has he?" Brad replied, still laughing. Ryan turned as Mat and Chris released him. They were all laughing and if Ryan could have, he would gladly have pummeled them all until their faces looked like rotted apples.  
  
"He's got me." Ryan said in a low voice. The laughing halted enough for Guy to say in a high voice,  
  
"One friend, huh? That's as pathetic as none at all."  
  
"I'm not his friend; I'm his brother." Ryan said tersely. He didn't waste any more of his time with them, instead he turned and went to look for Seth.  
  
The boy was nowhere to be found and to Ryan's irritation he had to go to class. With a curse, he swore that he'd find Seth before he left to go home.  
  
For Seth, the rest of the day was spent trying to stay awake. He hadn't eaten breakfast or lunch, and his lack of sleep as well as his hunger made it difficult for him to concentrate on schoolwork. Of course, hearing Brad's threat of, "You're dead," didn't help either.  
  
Seth didn't know how he managed to get through the rest of the day. Somehow he was able to though, and as everyone rushed to leave school, he hurried to his locker. His heart fell as he saw Brad and Chris leaning on either side of it, smiling. Without a second thought, Seth turned-and walked into Guy and Mat; Mat slung a 'friendly' arm around Seth's shoulders.  
  
"I'm hurt Seth, aren't we cool enough to hang out with you?" Brad asked in a hurt voice as they walked over to Seth and his captors. "Ryan's cool enough to hang out with you," he continued. Seth's eyes widened, but he didn't say anything. Brad glanced at his frozen expression and said slyly, "We told him about our little get together yesterday. You know what?" he leaned in closer to Seth and said in a whisper, "He laughed; thought it was hilarious. Guess he didn't know you're such a wuss about bugs." Seth swallowed hard, he knew Brad was lying, he knew it, but the thought of Ryan laughing at him, really laughing at him, made it hard for him to breathe.  
  
"We're having another party at my house, since you missed the last one, and you're gonna be the gust of honor, now that you're so popular with the ladies," Mat said softly, clutching Seth's shoulder tightly and turning towards the door The four boys, Mat's arm still around Seth, walked around him like an escort of body guards. To a casual observer, it looked like a group of friends. They walked out of the building, towards a black car Seth assumed was one of theirs. He was literally going into the den of the lion, he realize with an ironic clutch in his stomach.  
  
Ryan had gone to Seth's locker first, since he knew the combination, he opened it to see if Seth had gone there yet. He must not have, since his wallet was inside, along with the skateboard he liked to use outside the school. Ryan decided to wait by Seth's car; to be sure he didn't leave without him. He walked outside, wondering why Seth was taking so long when he saw something that made his heart skip a beat. Brad, Guy, Mat, and Chris were getting into a black car at the end of the parking lot. Mat was shoving Seth into the backseat. Just before he went in, Seth looked up and saw Ryan; their eyes met.  
  
"Hey!" Ryan shouted, running towards the car. Mat heard him and got in behind Seth, saying something to the others already in it. The car was gone before Ryan could catch up to them. He didn't know what to; he didn't know whose car it was or where they were going, but he had to try and find them. There was no way he'd just leave Seth to them for their fun. He turned to run back to the school. Marissa and Summer were leaving just as he walked in.  
  
"I mean, ew, Brad Carsley? I mean, Seth Cohen's better than him." Her words caught Ryan's ear and he turned to them, ignoring Marissa's smile of greeting for the moment.  
  
"Hey Summer, do you know Brad?" Summer's surprise at being addressed by him turned to a look of revulsion as she tossed her hair behind her back.  
  
"Yeah, he tried to get me to go over to his house since his parents are out of town. I mean, how desperate does he think I am?" Ryan ignored her last words, saying  
  
"Do you know where he lives?" she shrugged, Marissa eyed him curiously.  
  
"Yes, unfortunately. He just moved to my street." she told him the address.  
  
"Ryan, what's wrong?" Marissa called after him as he ran towards Seth's locker.  
  
"I'll explain later Marissa." He called over his shoulder. Summer shrugged at Marissa's concerned expression and she pulled her out of the door.  
  
Ryan opened Seth's locker again and searched his wallet. Sure enough, he had left his keys in them. Ryan had always lectured him about being so careless with his money and keys, but now he was glad of Seth's faith in the school's security.  
  
He repeated Brad's address in his head as he got into Seth's car and turned it on. Of course, he was only assuming that's where they had taken Seth, but if Summer was right about his parents not being there, it made the most sense.  
  
It took all his willpower to not speed down the road as fast as he could go, but getting pulled over by the police wouldn't help Seth at all. Reaching Summer's road, he noticed the houses were much farther apart than on the Cohen's street, so there was little chance any neighbors had seen Seth being taken in Brad's house. The black car was already parked, so he knew his assumption had been correct. Parking the car, he got out, already forming a plan in his head. Ryan walked up to the posh door of the large house and knocked hard.  
  
No one answered, even though he kept knocking. Stopping for a moment, he put his ear against the door to see if he could hear anything. There was silence for a minute, then a crash and someone's shout. It was enough to convince Ryan to just try breaking in. He was completely taken aback then when he tried turning the handle and instead of finding it locked, the door swung open. It seemed awfully strange of them to have left the door unlocked, but perhaps they had been too distracted with Seth to remember to lock it.  
  
Cautiously he walked in and looked around. The house was huge, but there was no sign of any of the boys. Then his eyes caught a door to his right; a stand was next to it and a plant with a broken vase lay in front of it, the dark soil contrasting heavily against the white carpet. Carefully he walked over to the door and opened it. A staircase lead downstairs; he walked down it slowly, until he heard someone talk. The staircase turned a corner, so he waited against the inside of it to hear what was happening.  
  
"Since when does a girl like her choose an ugly bastard like you over me?" Ryan heard Brad's voice shout. He heard a loud smack follow it, a punch by the sound of it, and another crash. "Well, maybe if we put you back in your place you'll stay away from her, and from normal people in general," Ryan heard a groan of pain from Seth; it was all he needed to run down the rest of the stairs. All four boys were standing in a sort of circle around Seth. Brad's back was turned to Ryan and the others' eyes were on Seth, who was huddling on the cold, hard, tile floor. Brad kicked Seth to his back after his last words and Ryan saw Seth's face was covered in blood. To his shock, he saw Brad take out a switchblade and start to bend over Seth. "I've heard it's extremely painful to have your nostrils split. Want to see if that's true?" he heard Brad say.  
  
"Get away from him," Ryan yelled; they all turned and stared at Ryan in disbelief. Seth tried to get up but Mat, behind him, kicked him to the ground. Seth's head hit the floor and he lay still. The room smelled like beer, and it was obvious by the cans lying around that they had been drinking. Brad sneered at Ryan.  
  
"Or what? I kinda like our odds against yours," snickers followed this, and Ryan felt anger sweep through him.  
  
"I'm not stupid. Want to beat me up too? Fine, I'm sure the police will understand. I've got a friend who's gonna call them if I'm not back with Seth in ten minutes." He held his breath, waiting to see if they bought it. Brad didn't appear to, but the other three exchanged nervous glances. At last, with a disgusted shrug, Brad stepped away from Seth.  
  
"We were getting bored anyway," he said. They stood back, arms crossed, and Ryan quickly went over to Seth, who was unconscious. With a grunt, he picked him up and walked as fast as he could up the stairs and out of the house.  
  
Seth woke up as they were driving back home. Ryan glanced at him with a worried expression.  
  
"You ok?" he asked, it was a dumb question, he knew, but he needed to know how seriously hurt Seth was. Seth didn't answer though; he merely groaned. Blood was gushing out of his nose and from a gash on his head, he held his arm at an odd angle, but that was all Ryan could see as he drove. When they got back to the house Ryan helped Seth inside, practically having to carry him again.  
  
"Man, you're heavier than you look," he complained. This time, Seth said in a weak voice,  
  
"Yeah, I'm all muscle." Once inside, Ryan tried to count Seth's wounds. Even to him they looked painful, and he had seen some very bad injuries before. Seth's face resembled a plum in color, except for the blood, and his hair was matted with blood. Checking his chest, Ryan found that it too was dark with bruises, as were his arms and legs.  
  
An hour later Seth was cleaned up and fully conscious, still cradling his right arm, which wasn't broken, but badly sprained from Mat twisting it behind his back.  
  
"We should call your parents," Ryan said as they sat on the couch. Seth tried to shake his head but winced.  
  
"No, don't," Ryan stared at him in disbelief.  
  
"Why not?" he asked. He'd have thought Seth would be eager to have his parents come home and have his dad sue the boys' families or something.  
  
"Cause there's no point." seeing Ryan's confusion, he continued, "If we report them, the worst that's going to happen is that they'll get suspended and come back angrier at me than before. Besides that, we only have our testimonies. No offense, but the court is probably more likely to think you beat me up and I'm too scared to tell the truth than that a couple of rich, 'upstanding' citizens did. Trust me; I've heard it all from dad." Seth fell silent again, head falling against the back of the couch. Ryan nodded his understanding; Seth had a point. They couldn't prove the boys had been drinking and owned a weapon.  
  
"Well then," he said eventually, "we'll just have to come up with a revenge that's enough to make them leave you alone for good," Seth shrugged, a wry smile on his face.  
  
"I tried to come up with one of those for almost seven years," he murmured. Ryan smiled, and for a split second Seth was reminded of Brad.  
  
"I wasn't here to help you with it though, was I?" he asked, and Seth shook his head. He liked the idea of revenge, but the odd glint in Ryan's eye made him wonder if he would still like it when he heard Ryan's plan.  
  
Ok, there, I wrote the second chapter. Thanks again to all who reviewed. If anyone has an idea for the next one, let me know, cause I'm racking my brain for one. Don't expect the next chapter so soon either, unfortunately I've got work to do. Still, this was fun, and I hope you all enjoy this chapter as much as the first one.  
-Luna Sealeaf Runicprincess@aol.com 


	3. Revenge

I'm so sorry this has taken so long everyone. Part of it was writer's block, and part was the holidays, which made me incredibly lazy. Anyway, I hope you all like the third chapter; it took me forever to come up with an idea for how it should end. Thanks again for all the reviews.  
  
Chapter Three:  
Revenge  
  
The next day was Friday; but Seth and Ryan decided to skip school. Seth claimed it still hurt to move and Ryan's excuse was that he needed to take care of Seth.  
  
Despite their conversation the previous evening, Ryan admitted that he had yet to think of a plan that would work. By the afternoon they were sitting on the couch mindlessly flipping through the channels, Ryan counting mentally how long it took to make a full circle. He had never even realized that there were so many channels on TV. Pretending to be interested in the current choice of show, Ryan asked casually,  
  
"So, why do these guys hate you so much anyway?" Seth was silent for a moment, staring at the TV. At last he answered, not looking at Ryan.  
  
"I don't think the others hate me so much, it's just Brad who does. They just follow their fearless leader. Why does he hate me? Isn't it obvious? He's jealous of my good looks. That or he's insane; personally I like to think it's the former," Ryan couldn't help but laugh at Seth's explanation.  
  
"Seriously though, you can't remember ever doing anything to them, or to Brad, that would make him hate you this much? It's kind of extreme for a childhood bully,"  
  
"So says the guy from Chino," Seth remarked blandly, glancing at Ryan, who was grinning.  
  
"True," was all Ryan said in response.  
  
Two hours later they had yet to come up with a good plan, and Ryan was fixing himself a sandwich while Seth dozed on the couch. He had fallen asleep after taking some painkillers, so Ryan decided not to wake him and ate silently in the kitchen.  
  
In his dream, Seth was 8 again. He was standing in the road, and there was people and confusion all around. In that strangely chaotic way dreams often had, he couldn't see what was going on, but he knew immediately what was happening. Someone was holding a blanket around him; it was his mom, and she was crying for some reason. There were sirens and lights everywhere; a car had crashed, Seth realized. It had gone off the road and crashed into several trees and rocks. He looked around the swarm of people and another little boy stood staring at him. Seth looked at the boys' eyes, and suddenly he knew what he was dreaming about.  
  
"Seth! Yo, Seth! Wake up man!" Ryan said loudly as he shook the sleeping form. He had heard him cry out from the kitchen and decided he must be having a nightmare. Seth woke with a start, staring at Ryan. For a moment he was confused and wondered where he was before he remembered.  
  
"Ryan! I know why Brad hates me!" Seth said breathlessly. Ryan looked surprised, and a little doubtful.  
  
"But you said you didn't have a clue. Why the sudden change in memory?" Seth tapped his head and smiled, although it was not an amused one.  
  
"All the answers were in here, I just forgot about them," Seeing Ryan's look of total confusion, and perhaps concern for Seth's mental well being, Seth started to explain. "My dream, it was a memory, sort of. When I was, let's see, I think I was about eight, I was in a car accident,"  
  
"So that explains it," Ryan said grinning, but Seth ignored this after rolling his eyes.  
  
"Anyway, it wasn't my mom driving. She and another woman used to carpool me and her daughter, Andrea, to and from school. It was Brad's mom and his twin sister Ryan," Seth said quietly. After an instant of silence, Ryan sat down on the chair next to the couch.  
  
"And, how does that make him hate you?" Ryan asked in a low tone.  
  
"Well, he never really liked me. Not sure why, but we were just kids anyway. "Then, one afternoon I was getting a ride home with them. I think it was raining, but I don't remember that day real well. The car went off the road and down a hill before crashing into some trees. They were both killed," Neither of them said anything for a few minutes.  
  
"Were you ok?" Ryan asked uncertainly as Seth stared unseeing at the coffee table.  
  
"I don't really remember, like I said. I don't think I was injured badly though. Maybe I got some sort of concussion, Mom didn't like to talk about it, and Dad didn't either cause it upset her. I think it freaked her out really bad when she got called by the police. She came to where the car had crashed because they hadn't taken me to the hospital yet. Brad was there too, with his father. Who would bring their kid to the death scene of their mom and sister?" Ryan agreed but didn't know what to say. "Well, I don't think Brad forgave the fact that I survived and his mom and Andrea didn't."  
  
"I thought Summer said his parents were out of town," Ryan said sounding confused. The idea of Seth being in a car accident, and in such a bad one, seemed weird and hard to think about.  
'Poor Kirsten and Sandy,' Ryan thought as he imagined what it must have been like for them to hear about a fatal car accident involving their only child. No wonder they didn't like to talk about it.  
  
"I guess his dad remarried, I didn't know them all that well, but I don't think Brad's parents were all that close."  
  
"Sad as it is, we still gotta find a way to him to leave you alone,"  
  
"Hey, maybe I could just go and apologize or something," Seth said with a weak smile when the silence stretched too long for his comfort.  
  
"Yeah, and then maybe he'll-" Ryan started to say in a joking manner, but he stopped, eyes widening and he stood up quickly. "Seth, I think I have an idea, but we might need your Dad's help,"  
  
"Oh no Ryan. We cannot tell either of my parents about this, remember?" Ryan's eyes glimmered as he ignored Seth's comment and strung his ideas together.  
  
"Seth, if we could prove that Brad is seriously trying to hurt you, could we get him expelled?" Seth looked at him in surprise then thought about it.  
  
"Yeah, I guess so.but he'd have to be making serious threats. We'd have to prove it beyond doubt too, and unless we can get him to sit down and write it out nicely for us." he shrugged, wondering what Ryan had gotten so excited about.  
  
"What if we got him to confess it on tape?" Ryan asked Seth as he grinned and crossed his arms.  
  
"That could work. But how would we get him to talk into a tape?" Seth asked. Ryan didn't answer. "Oh no Ryan. No thanks. I definitely do not feel like going anywhere near Brad anytime in the near or far future. Forget it."  
  
"Here Ryan, I made out my will. Try to get it to Mom and Dad when they get back." Seth handed Ryan a folded sheet of paper. Ryan was driving, so he only spared Seth a glance before turning back to the road.  
  
"Come on Seth, you'll be fine. I'm gonna watch you the whole time. As soon as you've got enough on the recorder, I'll pull up and you get in the car and we are out of there. Got it?" Seth didn't look convinced and placed the paper in the glove compartment.  
  
"And if they don't feel like talking?" he asked, not being able to hide the anxiety in his voice very well.  
  
"Then you cut the plan short and we tell your parents what's going on when they get back. Or come up with something else." Ryan pulled onto Brad's street. "Besides, how do you know Brad's not by himself at home?" Seth shrugged, slumped down in his seat. Ryan couldn't really blame him, but they had to get rid of them or Brad and his gang would never leave Seth alone. He knew this from experience.  
  
"I just know. Have you learned nothing of my luck?" Seth said miserably.  
  
"Look, I'm not going to wait until I have to scrape you off the street before I do something about him. Now I would gladly do your part and let you drive, but I won't know when they've said enough to really convict them. Besides, they'll be much more likely to talk to you," Seth didn't answer, so Ryan assumed this meant he agreed.  
  
Ryan stopped the car at a corner behind a tree. He could see the backyard of Brad's house from here. They planned for Seth to go around back and knock on the door and hopefully keep the two of them where Ryan would be able to stay in the car and still see them.  
  
"All right, here I go.off into the wild blue yonder, right? Wish me luck," Seth said nervously as he unbuckled his seat belt and got out of the car. Ryan turned off the engine and watched Seth, silently hoping that everything went according to plan.  
  
Seth checked his shirt pocket for the umpteenth time to make sure the small tape recorder his dad used was on and not visible. He took several deep breaths before finishing his walk across the yard and making his way up the stairs to the back door. With yet another deep breath he knocked once, then twice, and waited.  
  
For a few moments he thought that maybe no one was home. Brad's step mom and dad were still out of town, if Summer had been correct, but they had no idea if Brad would be home or not. At last he heard footsteps approach the door and it opened.  
  
"Hi Brad," Seth managed to get out. Brad stood in front of him, scowling and also a puzzled look on his face. He wore a long leather coat and jeans, with an old faded t-shirt.  
  
"What the hell do you want Cohen?" Brad spat at him. 'Well, at least he called me by my last name, that's an improvement, right?' Seth thought as he swallowed.  
  
"I just wanted to know something. Why do you hate me so much?" There, he had said it. Seth held his breath as he waited for Brad to answer. Brad studied him for what seemed like forever, and then he sneered.  
  
"Why kind of fucking question is that?" Brad opened stepped outside and closed the door, Seth walked backwards down a step.  
  
"Do you not like me because of the accident?" He asked, hoping the tape could pick everything up clearly.  
  
"I don't like you for a lot of reasons, but yeah, I guess I never figured why an idiot of a loser like you survived when my mom and sister were killed." Brad's face was turning red now, and his hands formed fists. Definitely not a good sign for Seth, but he needed Brad to keep talking.  
  
"It's not my fault you know. Maybe you should get some therapy or something." Seth barely had gotten the words out before Brad shoved him hard. He flailed for a minute, and then fell down the stairs.  
  
"Who the hell do you think you are to be telling me what to do?" Brad yelled at him as he walked down the stairs. Seth scrambled to his feet, quickly checking to make sure the recorder hadn't been damaged, although he couldn't be too obvious in case Brad realized what was happening.  
  
"I was friends with Andrea Brad. I know it didn't hurt me as much as it did you when she died, but I was sorry too. When are you going to get over their deaths?" Even to Seth, it sounded insensitive, but he didn't know what to say. He glanced to the right and saw the car still parked, although he couldn't make out Ryan from so far away.  
  
"I'll let it go when you're dead." Brad's voice made Seth look up startled at the change in tone. Brad's voice was hard, and instead of shouting he had said the last words quietly, perhaps too quietly.  
  
"What?" Seth asked, taking a step forward. He wanted to run in the opposite direction, but he needed to get Brad's threat on tape if he wanted to get rid of him.  
  
"I said, I'll be let it go when you're dead." Brad took a step backwards, to Seth's surprise.  
  
"You're not serious man, you're gonna wait around till I die before you get on with your life?" Brad smiled, and Seth felt his blood freeze.  
  
"Who said anything about waiting? I was opting for either you to commit suicide, I mean, what do you have to live for? Or if we managed to hit you a little too hard, we'd claim it was an accident."  
  
"You don't think you could get away with that, did you?" Seth was seriously afraid now. Brad was crazy; that was obvious, and more importantly, those threats; confessions really, were more than enough to expel him. With that thought, he didn't wait for Brad to answer, but instead turned and started running back towards the car.  
  
Just as he had turned, he heard a loud noise and felt something fly past his leg. At first he didn't realize what had happened until he turned and saw Brad-holding a gun pointed at Seth. He was holding the gun with a cloth, and somewhere in the back of his mind Seth wondered why he would do that.  
  
"Don't worry; I'm sure your parents won't be too upset when they hear you killed yourself after I tried to talk you out of it. You were just so overcome with guilt at ruining my life after the car accident." Seth didn't really understand what Brad was saying; his blood pounded loudly in his ears and he wondered what the hell he should do.  
  
The minute Ryan saw Seth start to run he turned the engine on; when he saw Brad reach into his jacket and take something out, he got out of the car as fast as he could, but it was still too late. He heard the blast and wondered for a split second if he had gotten Seth killed. Then he saw Seth turn around and he continued running. He stopped before either boy could see him, trying to figure out how he could get himself and Seth away without getting shot. Surely the neighbors would have heard that? He had no way of knowing if anyone had heard the shot, and Seth had been right when he had said that people would be quicker to point the finger at Ryan before blaming a rich, 'normal' citizen.  
  
Ryan heard Brad talking to Seth, but he didn't pay much attention to what he said. Instead he searched the ground; there, he picked up a rock about the size of his fist, and then ran towards the other two.  
  
"Ryan, no, get out of here," Seth called out when he saw Ryan. Ignoring him, Ryan pulled back his arm and threw the rock at Brad with all of his strength. The rock hit Brad in the chest, but Ryan didn't stop to look anymore.  
  
"Come on!" he yelled at Seth, grabbing his arm and running back towards the car. They were almost to the car when he heard another blast, and Seth cried out and fell.  
  
"I'm ok," Seth gasped, getting back to his feet. Ryan let out the breath he'd nearly choked on when he'd seen Seth fall. The bullet had grazed Seth's leg-Brad must have a fairly good aim-but he was not seriously hurt.  
  
They both got into the car as fast as they could, Seth laying on the chair and breathing deeply, Ryan trying to start the car despite his shaking hands.  
  
They drove in silence for awhile, until they were nearly home.  
  
"Well, that went well, don't you think?" Seth asked, and Ryan gave him a shaky grin. It had gone alright; it certainly could have been worse. "Hey, Ryan," Seth said again.  
  
"Yeah?" Ryan asked as he drove up the driveway of their home.  
  
"Thanks," Seth said.  
  
"No problem," Ryan replied, not knowing what else to say.  
  
"Guess our lives are back to normal, right?"  
  
"Pretty much,"  
  
"Sounds good,"  
  
"Yeah." Ryan could only agree. Suddenly a thought occurred to him. "So what should we tell your parents when they ask how you got bruises all over you?" He smiled as Seth shot him a mock glare.  
  
"Um.I had an allergic reaction? I fell? I fought with the plants in the house and they won?" Seth continued listing excuses as Ryan laughed and they walked inside their home.  
  
The End.  
  
Ok, before I get reviews telling me how much the ending sucked, here's my explanation: I want to leave it open for anyone else who would like to continue the story. Believe me, anyone who wants to use this plot or the characters I made up is welcome too, although I'd appreciate if you told me just cause I'm curious to see if anyone can come up with something. I mean, did something go wrong with the taping? Maybe they didn't set it up right and nothing got recorded, or maybe Brad doesn't wait for them to tell people what happened before going to try and finish the job. Anyway, I just wanted to make sure people know that I know that there is little closure and that it ended abruptly. I also know that it was a short last chapter, but that's what you get. Sorry, I really am. I'm much too lazy to try and come up with more. Thanks for all the reviews of the previous two chapters; I hope at least some of you like this one too.  
Happy New Year everyone,  
  
Luna Sealeaf. 


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